This invention pertains to the art of connectors and, more particularly, to connectors of the type wherein connector bodies having cooperating male and female portions are locked together in some predetermined axial relationship.
The invention is particularly applicable to electrical connectors and will be described with particular reference thereto. However, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the invention has far broader applications and may be used in many other environments and for other types of connector constructions.
In many electrical connectors, male and female connector members are advantageously employed with a portion of the male connector being closely received in the female connector at assembly. One of the connector members typically includes prongs or the like receivable in corresponding openings in the other connector member to effect an electrical interconnection therebetween as is conventional. Because of the interfitting relationship between the prongs and receiving openings, the male and female connector members are placed in a cooperative or assembled relationship by an axial motion. In some cases, no additional retaining or locking means is provided between the two connector members.
However, in many installations, it is desired to lockingly retain the male and female members in the assembled condition to prevent inadvertent disruption of the electrical interconnection. Heretofore, many and varied devices or arrangements have been utilized to obtain such locking capabilities. While some of the prior locking devices have been rather complex or intricate in construction, others have been rather simple in nature. One of the more prevalent types of locking devices is the so-called bayonet fitting where one of the male and female connector members includes one or more locking tabs received in one or more axial receiving grooves disposed in the other connector member. When the male connector member has been axially inserted into the female connector member to some predetermined length, the members may be rotated relative to each other in order that the locking tabs are moved to locking areas included in the receiving grooves. These arrangements thus prevent inadvertent axial disassembly of the connector members. Moreover, it is also common to include axial biasing means between the male and female connector members for continuously urging the locking tabs into a retained or locked position in the receiving groove locking areas.
While the foregoing general type of connector construction has found wide commercial acceptance, they do suffer an inherent drawback. That is, the male and female connector members are not automatically moved to a locked condition when a predetermined length of the male member is axially received by the female member. As a result, and unless a positive turning action is effected between the two members, it is possible to inadvertently cause disassociation therebetween. The potential for this occurrence is particularly undesirable in, for example, applications where an uninterrupted electrical supply is necessary or where the connector is not easily accessible.
Because of the foregoing difficulties, it has been considered desirable to develop an automatic locking arrangement for interfitting male and female members. The subject invention provides such a device which overcomes these problems and others. The invention is relatively simple in design, easy to use, versatile, and adapted to a wide range of environments or applications.